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Wednesday, 28 October 2015

TfL has announced plans for public consultation on the development of the Dalston Junction /Dalston Kingsland section of Crossrail2 - a new underground line budgetted at £28Bn. Construction is hoped to start in 2020 with lines running by 2030. TfL's has identified five Dalston sites, marked A-E on the map below, where there will potentially be considerable impact, including demolition and redevelopment of buildings, even streets.

The area shaded purple is the proposed underground platform with the new aboveground ticket offices at each end marked with a red triangle. The sites marked are on both sides of Kingsland ( east & west) and are all said to be required for Crossrail2 construction. TfL suggest that redevelopment of those and adjoining sites could contribute to the cost of the Crossrail2 development (What? More unaffordable TfL flats? Ed.)

Monday, 19 October 2015

A leading UK firm of independent environmental surveyors, Anstey Horne, has reported that a planned development adjoining the Colvestone Primary School's nursery will result generally in "an increase of three to four times the existing levels of overshadowing" and that the development will leave "around half of the (playground) space in the proposed scheme's shadow for a significant amount of the day for much of the year." Anstey Horne commented that the test applied in the developer's own report was "simplistic" and "would potentially provide a misleading impression." They go on to state " we cannot agree with the report's conclusion that the increase in shadowing will be modest and that the area will continue to receive plenty of sunlight."

Colvestone Primary School south facing outdoor play/learning area for nursery school children is used throughout the day, year round, weather permitting

The private development of a café and flats obtained planning permission on 2nd September, through the use of the Committee Chair's casting vote, despite strong objections from local parents and the Head Teacher warning of the risk to children's education, health and well being. Hackney's planning officers failed to consult their colleagues in the Learning Trust which is the body responsible for education in Hackney.

How Colvestone Nursery School outdoor play/learning area will appear after the development which has received planning permission.

Anstey Horne go on to report "The effect of the proposed scheme will be to completely close of the open aspect to the south....This is of real concern as the additional overshadowing is likely to adversely affect the benefits that sunlight brings to the playground, making the area not just less pleasant, gloomy and cold but also preventing the drying out of the ground and surrounding surfaces. More persistent overshadowing here in colder months may prevent frost, ice and snow from thawing and increase the growth of moss, slime etc potentially making it more slippery. This is obviously of concern given the worst-affected space is dedicated area for young children's play throughout the day and year...not just at break and lunchtimes as was assumed"
The development site was once owned by Hackney and it is subject to a restrictive covenant protecting sunlight to the school's land. Hackney have failed to reply to Freedom of Information Act requests, and a local Councillor's letter, asking whether the Council will now act to prevent the loss of sunlight.

The developers, Chan and Eayrs, say on their website,"We believe that simple things like the natural light that fills a space and awakens your spirits...enriches life in a way that is priceless".(Indeed it does, so why are they trying to take our kids sunshine away? Ed.)

Thursday, 8 October 2015

On line marketeers Mansion Global, part of Dow Jones, has launched its promotion of “FiftySevenEast - Dalston with a view” - the 15 storey tower developmenton Kingsland High Street (next to Dalston Kingsland station) now under construction. "East London is about more than hipsters" it says. Its about "looking for a return on investment." Prices start at £470,000 rising to £1,500,000.

The FiftySevenEast tower was planned to be 19 storeys, as this image shows, but was later reduced to 15 storeys

Mansion Global's mission is to connect "the world's affluent real restate buyers with prestige properties across the globe", and advises that London's East End is "attracting more and more foreign buyers ".Imperial Dragon, who specialise in UK investment for Asian clients, are also marketing the development.

The new residents targeted for Dalston - as promoted by the FiftySevenEast marketeers

The development will dominate the High Street, and so diminish neighbouring listed heritage buildings. Like a lighthouse in reverse, it will block sunlight from local homes, businesses and public spaces, and it will create high winds locally.

News article in London's Evening standard. It refers to an OPEN Dalston meeting arranged with London Mayor, to discuss public space, but Boris didn't intervene to improve the scheme.Dalston's greatest need, for affordable rentals, family homes and children's play areas, are largely ignored. Of 98 flats there will be only14 "affordable starter homes", all in the front block with their own 'poor door', and even those are at prices requiring more than double the average Hackney household income.

Hackney's former Deputy Mayor, Karen Allcock, and Councillor Laing, were employed by the developer's PR company Four Communications at the time when it was promoting re-development of the site.The original scheme was unanimously turned down by the Committee after OPEN Dalston's vociferous campaign and 1,300 signature petition. The amended scheme only received planning permission after a special meeting between the developers and the Hackney Planning Committee, at which the public was not allowed to speak. The meeting was called, we were told, to "clear up misunderstandings" which had led to the earlier refusaL.

After approval the FiftySevenEast scheme was then sold on to Taylor Wimpey which had itself won planning permission to build an exclusive gated development on former public land sold by TfL, above the Western Curve railway tunnels , also on Kingsland High Street. Both schemes are now under construction.

Taylor Wimpey's seven-storey Western Curve scheme, just south of FiftySevenEast, is also now under construction. It is nearly double the height of its neighbours and even some of the new flats are below British Standards. Hackney Council provided over £1million in public funds to help make the scheme possible ( Using public money to fund private investment is also known as 'corporate welfare' - Ed).

Tuesday, 6 October 2015

The Save Haggerston Pool campaign has called a public meeting and invited Council representatives to outline the "expressions of interest" which they have received from potential bidders for a 250 year lease of the Grade II Listed building.

The meeting is on Thursday 8th October at 7pm in the VLC Centre, Whiston Road E2 8BN, next door to Haggerston Baths. The proposals received will be on display to view from 6pm.

The meeting will be chaired by the Campaign and is the first opportunity for the public to question and debate the future of the Baths, with Hackney's Assistant Director of Property Services and its Cabinet Member for Health and Community Services, since the Council announced its intention to invite offers for Haggerston Baths last June.

"It’s like breaking into an Egyptian tomb, labyrinthine corridors insinuate in every direction, stairs snake towards unfamiliar offices and storage spaces, into sinister chambers where utilitarian grey tubs, the remnants of the second-class female baths, look more suited to archive footage of cold-hosed lunatics. The swimming pool is drained and the three churchy windows towards which I used to swim, as through a flooded cathedral, in my laboured choppy crawl, before breaststroking back again, were covered over. The natural light that used to flood the high-ceilinged hangar is excluded, in favour of sanctioned entropy. Haggerston Baths is another of those decommissioned non-places kept in a persistent vegetative state, like the Gothic mass of the neighbouring Queen Elizabeth Hospital for Children in Hackney Road, until the right development package comes along. And meanwhile spiders knit their spectral nets. Shivering phantoms stand before empty mirrors in white-tiled washrooms where the taps leak coal dust.""Swimming on the 52nd Floor" Iain Sinclair, London review of Books

Planning alerts!

OPEN Dalston is a forum of local people who live or work in Dalston. OPEN Dalston campaigns for excellence in the quality of the built environment and public realm, the provision of transportation and amenities, and to ensure that changes to these have proper regard to the needs of local residents and businesses and the maintenance of a sustainable residential and business community. For more information please email info@opendalston.net
Some members of OPEN Dalston are also members, and some are Directors, of the not-for-profit company OPEN (Organisation for Promotion of Environmental Needs Ltd) – www.openuk.net